1. Texas Ecoregions

2. Key Vocabulary
Ecoregion
Plateau
Panhandle
Plains
Prairie

3. Texas Ecoregions
Texas is divided into 7 ecoregions.

4. Texas Ecoregions Gulf Coast
The Gulf Coast stretches along the Gulf of Mexico for hundreds of miles. Cities such as Corpus Christi, Galveston, and Houston are in the Gulf Coast region.
Near the gulf waters you can see marshes, barrier islands, estuaries (where salty sea water and fresh river water meet), and bays.
As you travel west, you can see prairies and grasslands.

5. Texas Ecoregions Pineywoods
The East Texas region is primarily a thick forest of pines, hence the name Pineywoods!
The terrain is rolling with lower, wetter bottomlands that grow hardwood trees such as elm, mesquite and ash.

6. Texas Ecoregions South Texas Plains
The South Texas plains and brush country stretches from the edges of the Hill Country into the subtropical regions of the Lower Rio Grande valley.
Much of the area is dry and covered with grasses and thorny brush such as mesquite and prickly pear cacti.

7. Texas Ecoregions Prairies and Lakes
The Prairies and Lakes region is in north central and central Texas.
This area is a transition between the plains of the West Texas Panhandle and the Pineywoods of East Texas.

8. Texas Ecoregions Hill Country
The Texas Hill Country is located in Central Texas.
The land is rolling to hilly grassland. It sits on the Edwards Plateau. A plateau is high, flat land.
The Edwards Plateau region comprises an area of central Texas commonly known as the Texas Hill Country
There are also hidden, underground lakes in the Edwards Aquifer
San Marcos Underground Springs

9. Texas Ecoregions Big Bend Country/Trans Pecos
West Texas has wide-open spaces with rugged plateaus (plat-toes) and desert mountains.
The plateaus have short grasses and brush.
The desert is dry and hot in the day and cool at night.
Plants and animals are adapted for the desert.

10. Texas Ecoregions Panhandle Plains
The northernmost area of Texas is called the Panhandle.
This region has mostly flat, grassy land or plains.
The Panhandle goes from gently rolling hills to rough and dissected with canyons.